College Education Purpose

College Education Purpose

Before World War II, attending college was a privilege, usually reserved for the upper class, but, in today’s society scholarships, grants, and loans are available to the average student which has made pursuing a college education a social norm. Norms are usually good, they help keep society run in an organized manner by sharing common rules and values. But, when pursuing a college education becomes a norm, it does more destruction than good. For a lot of students, a major reason for attending college is because their parents tell them it’s the thing to do to become successful in life.

These eighteen year olds who had virtually no say in what they wanted to study in high school are now ask “ what is your major?” or better yet “what do you want to do for the rest of your life?” This is a big question, and most have no idea what they want to do. So, in a state of confusion they instinctively choose to study in a field that will benefit them economically when they graduate. Is this what a higher education means, to go through college fixed on the money? Or, is there a deeper meaning to it all, if so how can it be obtained? These are the sort of questions that need to be asked when considering going to college.

To get a sense of what an education was intended for we must look at the ancient Greek society. The philosophers like the Sophist, Socrates, and Plato were a major part of the Greek society and the rest of the world. Take the Sophist for example, these scholars who would, for a fee, travel to give public lectures on such subjects as math, grammar, rhetoric, ethics and science. For the citizens, lectures were not only an educational experience, it was also considered a form of ...

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...s, so, basically it is up to us to make that change. Now, I’m not talking about a revolt, at least not in the traditional sense. I suggest jumping the track and exploring what is out there in the world before deciding what you want to do for the rest of your life. This is what I had to figure out for my self. When I was a freshman majoring in business, and I was miserable because I had no interest in the classes I was taking, so I dropped out. I spent the next two years traveling, and somewhere in those two years I realized that photography was what I wanted to pursue. The funny thing was since I was about six I’ve always wanted to be a photographer, but I didn’t realize it because I didn’t stop to really think about what I truly wanted to do. I realize that I’m not going to make the big bucks, which is OK because you can’t put a monetary value on happiness.